5 Tips for Designing a Workspace to Inspire Productivity
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When you consider the fact that many people spend 40 or more hours a week inside their office space, it makes sense that this space should be as conducive to a positive work experience as possible.
Your surroundings have a major impact on how you function in your daily life—so your office space should be designed to motivate employees and help increase productivity.
Changes in office design
Today’s office designs are putting a lot of emphasis on:
- Green building design
- Wide open, multi-functional office spaces
Greener offices see lower energy bills and are often more comfortable for workers as well, so there’s less fighting over the thermostat and less sick days per year. Open offices help to promote a feeling of camaraderie amongst workers and also help them feel more comfortable at work.
Together, these two types of design focus on making the office a sustainable, comfortable place to work. This means it’s easier to recruit new employees and reduce turnover with those currently employed.
These five tips will help you rethink your office space to create an area conducive to this attitude.
Tip 1: Create breakout meeting areas
Help your employees feel more comfortable by creating lounge and meeting areas that have nothing to do with lunch time. Create an area where meetings can occur organically, away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the workplace.
Many businesses are now creating small, quiet, and comfortable areas for employees to go either alone or in groups to work in an informal, yet comfortable way.
Make it happen in your office:
Convert a seldom used office or corner of the building into a comfortable lounge for your employees to use at their leisure. Include lots of lighting, as well as comfortable seating, and a variety of configurations to help encourage use and conversations away from the desk areas. You may want to include sound-reducing panels to allow for privacy when needed as well.
Tip 2: Get rid of cables
No one wants to trip over cables everywhere they turn.
While in the past companies that utilized separate offices or lots of cubicles could hide wires, newer, open office spaces make that a lot more difficult. Wires running everywhere detract from the aesthetic that an open office brings. They also create a safety hazard that makes it difficult for people to move around.
Make it happen in your office:
As companies open up their offices, they’re also going wireless wherever they can. According to the Fixr Wireless Computer Network cost guide, a wireless computer network costs only around $300 to $350 to set up and can eliminate a large number of cables and wires from the floors.
For the remaining wires in the room, try getting creative in how you run them. Snake them over ceilings and under floors to eliminate the hazards and create a more open space.
Tip 3: Create workstations
Once upon a time, people often felt as though they were chained to their desks, getting the work done in one—often cluttered—area. Jobs are beginning to become more fluid, however, with people often performing many roles within one company and with some overlap as well.
At the same time, open offices mean that employees can float around and work where they want, so that they can be more comfortable. All this means that traditional desk setups need to go.
Make it happen in your office:
Instead of desks, consider creating workstations, where people can float to their applicable tasks. This keeps employees from sitting in one spot too long, which can be beneficial for their health, and helps prevent boredom from setting in as well.
Tip 4: Improve air quality
Many office buildings are not set up for optimum light or air flow. They’re also not the most sustainably designed, with high utility bills, drafts, and battles over who controls the thermostat.
As a result, many office workers consequently develop health conditions due to poor air quality, and your company may also end up overpaying for utilities each month. Improving air quality and sustainability at the same time will make your office more comfortable, healthier, and more energy-efficient.
Make it happen in your office:
Start by improving the insulation within your building. Insulation both helps lower energy bills, while making employees more comfortable and reducing sound.
Next, invest in things like digital thermostats and humidifiers, which can improve the air quality and your energy profile at the same time. Humid air is more comfortable at lower temperatures, which can lower your energy bills and keep your employees healthier and more comfortable at the same time.
Tip 5: Open up your floor space
The dreaded cubicle is often included in just about every office worker’s nightmare. These temporary, adjustable partitions are meant to separate employees from one another, which in turn is supposed to increase productivity. Instead, it may do just the opposite, making employees feel isolated from one another. This is why many companies are turning toward more open spaces with adjustable work areas, lounges, and better space planning.
Many companies are also beginning to discover that getting rid of cubicles saves money, because a wide open office space requires less overall area than one divided up. It’s also more customizable to your employee’s needs, so they can feel more at home and get more done.
Make it happen in your office:
Open up your office space by doing away with the cubicles and many of the smaller office spaces. Invest in lounges, kitchen areas, comfortable seating, and varying workstations where your employees can work at their own pace and on their own terms. This will make them more comfortable while helping to ensure they want to come to work each day.
Invest in your employees
A good working environment is essential to employee happiness and productivity. It’s also important for companies looking to attract the best and the brightest, as a good office design is becoming a key component in job searches.
Investing in your office design is also investing in your employees and their continued productivity—both now and as your company grows.
